Michael Holley of WEEI.com reports that former Jets coach Eric Mangini will be named the next coach of the Cleveland Browns by the end of the week.

Holley made the report live on Wednesday’s edition of The Dale & Holley Show. The audio is available at the radio station’s web site (it’s in the January 7 opening segment), and the news is reiterated in a blurb on the front page of the site.

Meanwhile, indications are emerging that Mangini is pilfer as many members of his former staff in New York as he possibly can. According to the Cleveland Plain Dealer, Mangini has spoken to at least to of his former assistant coaches with the Jets about joining him.

Per the New York Daily News (via the Plain Dealer), Mangini wants to hire Jets offensive line coach Bill Callahan to be the offensive coordinator in Cleveland.

That said, if Callahan or any other members of the Jets’ coaching staff without a head coach are under contract, the Jets can prevent them from leaving.

As a practical matter, teams with assistant coaches under contract but no head coach are waiting to see who the head coach will be before allowing the assistant coaches to scatter.

As a practical matter, calls are being made by guys like Mangini to guys who’ll possibly join them. It’s not presumptuous for Mangini to do it — it’s smart.

The development necessarily means that Pats V.P. of player personnel Scott Pioli is out of the running in Cleveland. It was widely believed that the G.M. job with the Browns was Pioli’s if he wanted. However, as Holley points out, Pioli and Mangini won’t be working together.

Cowboys | A. Jones released
Wed, 07 Jan 2009 15:25:31 -0800
The Dallas Cowboys have announced they have released CB Adam Jones.

Cowboys | A. Jones surprised he was released
Wed, 07 Jan 2009 15:55:41 -0800
Calvin Watkins, of The Dallas Morning News, reports former Dallas Cowboys CB Adam Jones said he was surprised he was released by the Cowboys. "Surprised. Yeah, I was surprised. All I can do is keep working hard, keep my nose clean and hope for the best," Jones said.

Cowboys | Jones not inclined to take TO off roster
Wed, 07 Jan 2009 15:43:21 -0800
Ed Werder, of ESPN, reports Dallas Cowboys owner/general manager Jerry Jones is not inclined to take WR Terrell Owens off the roster this offseason, though some of his internal advisors suggest he take him off to improve team chemistry. The Cowboys owe Owens a $3 million bonus in June, which is likely the deadline for removing Owens.

The New Orleans Saints fired defensive coordinator Gary Gibbs on Wednesday, jettisoning him from the coaching staff after finishing in the bottom third in total defense for two consecutive seasons under his leadership.

The Saints had the 11th-ranked defense during Gibbs’ first season in New Orleans. They fell to 27th in 2007, and showed little improvement in 2008, finishing 23rd in total defense.

In 2008, New Orleans allowed 339.5 yards of offense per game.

“This was a very difficult decision to make,” Saints coach Sean Payton said in a statement, per the New Orleans Times-Picayune. “Gary Gibbs is a fine man and football coach who has worked diligently during his tenure with the Saints. I thank him for the many contributions that he has made to this team and wish him continued success in his career.”

The Saints ranked 23rd in passing defense (221.7 average) and 17th in rushing defense (117.8 average) this season. They registered just 15 interceptions and 28 sacks.

Gibbs was part of Payton’s original staff, arriving from the Dallas Cowboys in 2006.

Interesting article from Wednesday's Dallas Morning News showing that the Broncos were the 3rd most injured team in the NFL this season. The only problem with using injuries as an excuse is that Baltimore and New England were only marginally less injured and they both won 11 games.

And maybe that’s the key to dealing with injuries. Sure, a team needs to have capable backups. But a team also can’t afford to adopt a “woe is us” attitude when, for whatever reason, they experience more injuries to starters than other teams.

In our view, using injuries as an excuse for poor performance only leads to more poor performance. It reduces the accountability of everyone in the organization — from the G.M. to the coach to the assistants to the players.

Perhaps that’s why the Broncos tanked down the stretch. Yeah, they lost a flock of running backs to injury. But this was/is an offensive system that created a revolving door of 1,000-yard rushers over the past 14 years. Instead of listening to the announcers and the writers who were willing to write off the season as an aberration, every person in the organization should have accepted the situation as the ultimate challenge.

Do injuries affect a team’s overall performance? Yes. Maybe that’s because too many teams allow injuries to affect their performance, by using injuries as the safe harbor for missed assignments, errant throws, untimely fumbles, and dropped passes.

A league source tells us that Broncos special teams coordinator Scott O’Brien is expected to join Eric Mangini’s coaching staff in Cleveland.

Per the source, O’Brien is informing others in the league of his imminent arrival.

O’Brien is not one of the six assistant coaches whom the Broncos will encourage the team’s next head coach to retain.

O’Brien began his NFL coaching career in Cleveland, working as special teams coach from 1991 through 1995. He went with the franchise to Baltimore, and stayed through 1998.

He spent the next six years in Carolina as the special teams coach, and then spent two seasons in Miami with Nick Saban as “coordinator of football operations/assistant to the head coach.”

Though his official duties might have included stocking Saban’s office with Little Debbie cakes, folks with the Dolphins at the time suspected that O’Brien also was Saban’s extra set of eyes and ears.

After Saban went to Alabama, O’Brien landed in Denver, where he has spent the last two seasons.

It will be very interesting to me to see how O'Brien does in Cleveland. I always got the impression that Shanahan considered STs as something that barely registered on his radar, ergo, it's constant failure throughout Shanahan's reign. BTW, what ever happened to that Dominic Hixon guy?

Giants G.M. Jerry Reese told the New York Daily News following an upset loss to the Philadelphia Eagles on Sunday that Burress “absolutely” could return next season, and he acknowledged that the Giants weren’t the same without the big wideout on the field.

Burress remains under contract. His situation is complicated, though, by his impending March court date for gun charges after shooting himself in the leg in a nightclub along with his lengthy history of violating team rules and angering head coach Tom Coughlin.

Burress could also face punishment from the NFL league office for violating the Personal Conduct Policy.

Nonetheless, Reese isn’t crossing Burress off his list and plans to keep his options open. It’s worth noting that Reese took a similar open-minded stance with disgruntled tight end Jeremy Shockey prior to trading him to the New Orleans Saints even when Shockey was lobbying to be allowed to leave.

So maybe the goal here is to simply build some trade value for Burress.

“Obviously it’s hard to replace that,” Reese told the Daily News when asked about the impact to the passing game without Burress in the lineup. “The guy has a presence out there and when you lose that, teams play you differently. Your margin of error is way less when you don’t have a guy with that kind of presence out there. Your margin for errors goes way down so you have to capitalize on every opportunity you have.”

Highly-regarded Baltimore Ravens defensive coordinator Rex Ryan has emerged as the new frontrunner for the New York Jets’ head coaching vacancy, a source told the Newark Star-Ledger.

According to the article, Ryan’s five-hour meeting with Jets owner Woody Johnson and G.M. Mike Tannenbaum on Sunday in Baltimore made a huge impression on the Jets’ top brass. So much so that the Jets are apparently willing to wait until after the Super Bowl if need be to potentially hire the son of fiery former NFL coach Buddy Ryan.

“Rex likes the owner,” the anonymous source with knowledge of the meeting said. “He was impressed that the owner flew down to meet with him. The Jets were very serious. I can tell you that Rex is leaning toward the Jets and the Jets are leaning toward Rex. In fact, the Jets told Rex that they’re prepared to wait until after the Super Bowl to hire him if they have to.”

Ryan also interviewed for the St. Louis Rams’ head-coach opening Sunday in Baltimore, and that meeting also went well enough that he’s a strong candidate there, too.

The article also notes that former Ravens coach Brian Billick is considered a longshot to even be interviewed by the Jets at this point.

Ryan runs a 3-4 and is the architect of the Ravens’ second-ranked defense, which has forced eight turnovers in two playoff games. The Jets wouldn’t have to change their current 3-4 defensive scheme dramatically if Ryan is their choice over New York Giants defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo, who is a 4-3 proponent.

Improving locker room chemistry will be the highest priority for the Dallas Cowboys this offseason and that will force serious discussions between Wade Phillips' coaching staff and owner Jerry Jones about whether to release controversial wide receiver Terrell Owens, according to team and league sources.

"I think we all know that chemistry is the problem with this team more than the schemes or anything else,'' a Cowboys source said. "Are we going to continue to allow talent to outweigh everything else in the decisions we make with players and putting the roster together? We're like the Redskins used to be when they signed every player they wanted. There's more to it than talent. It has to be more about the team.''

"The big one [Owens] didn't get discussed yet, but I'm sure it will and real hard.''

As the Detroit Lions continue to search for the man who’ll try to avoid matching the Buccaneers 26-game string of multiseason futility, Titans defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz continues to be the favorite to succeed Rod Marinelli.

Tom Kowalski of Mlive.com said Wednesday that Schwartz looks to be the choice of the franchise.

And the choice could be made soon.

“I think they’re in the final stages,” Kowalski said during a radio appearance. “Schwartz appears, at least to me, more ready to handle this thing.”

Schwartz and Dolphins defensive backs coach Todd Bowles have had two interviews each for the job. Vikings defensive coordinator Leslie Frazier and Giants defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo have yet to be invited for a second sit-down, according to the Detroit Free Press.

The Free Press also reports that Chargers defensive coordinator Ron Rivera was scheduled to be interviewed for the first time by Lions G.M. Martin Mayhew in Houston, where coaches and scouts are gathered to watch practices leading up to the annual East-West Shrine Game.

And he is former Jaguars, Redskins, and Titans defensive coordinator — and former Bills head coach — Gregg Williams.

“A lot has gone into this decision, and we targeted Gregg as the coach we’d like to hire after our first interview because he was so impressive and prepared,” coach Sean Payton said in a release, via the New Orleans Times-Picayune. “As an offensive coach, I have game-planned against his defenses in the past, and I know the problems they create. He’s an aggressive coach, but his units are always sound fundamentally. We have some pieces in place for him to work with, and I know he’s excited to get started.”

The Saints fired defensive coordinator Gary Gibbs last week, and they immediately focused on Williams, who was released by the Jags after a single season during which the team’s defense didn’t perform nearly as well as it had under former defensive coordinator Mike Smith, current head coach of the Falcons and 2008 AP coach of the year.

As of yesterday, we’d heard rumblings that Williams received an offer from the Packers and was shopping it back to the Saints. If true, the Saints apparently upped the ante.

The Saints had the top offense in the game during the 2008 season, based on average yards gained per game. But they were 23rd in total defense, and it’s widely believed that their inability to stop their opponents had a major role in a second straight season without a playoff game.

Chris Mortensen and Michael Smith of ESPN are reporting that Jim Schwartz and the Lions have agreed in principle to a deal that will make Schwartz the next head coach of the Lions. Per the ESPN duo, it will be a four year deal.

Schwartz’s hiring means that the Titans are looking for a new defensive coordinator. It won’t be former coordinator Gregg Williams. Williams, who had the job for four years before leaving to become head coach of the Bills in 2001, joined the New Orleans Saints staff earlier on Thursday.

Schwartz inherits the NFL’s first-ever 0-16 team which, by his own modest admission, has “some holes” on their roster. One of his first duties will be to find a starting quarterback, something the team’s been looking for, per Schwartz, since Bobby Layne was sent packing.

Those quotes are both from an entertaining Monday press conference that may have served as a trial balloon for how Schwartz would handle taking over a team mired in the muck. He did it with good humor, something that may be tested in the years to come.

No doubt. His absence allowed teams (particularly Philly) to single the WR's and cheat the safties up for run support. His absence also exposed how mediocre Eli Manning is...

Along these lines, Mark Schlereth did an excellent job tracking Hixon on one play in that game ... it was a Jacobs run to the right ... while meantime way back on the other side of scrimmage, Hixon hardly made an effort to block his man, the CB. Anyway the play developed, and Jacobs broke free ... until that same CB made a TD saving tackle at around the 20-yard line. Because Hixon didn't block him. What an eye-opener how WR blocking makes such a big deal. BTW, the G-Men were held to a FG on that drive, so Hixon's half-ass "block" away from the play might've cost them the game.

With Mike Nolan and Gregg Williams taking defensive coordinator positions with other teams after being identified as finalists for the same job in Green Bay, another name is being added to the Packers’ list.

According to Adam Schefter of NFL Network, Pats special assistant/secondary Dom Capers is interviewing for the defensive coordinator job on Mike McCarthy’s staff.

Capers, 58, has spent the last 23 years in the NFL, working as among other things the first head coach of both the Panthers and the Texans, and the defensive coordinator of the Steelers, Jaguars, and Dolphins.

Another former Steelers defensive coordinator, and two-time former head coach, remains in the running as well — Jim Haslett.

Then there’s Eagles secondary coach Sean McDermott. He still might get the job, if Philly loses on Sunday at Arizona.